Geneva Adventures Part 1: Who Needs Sleep?

It’s pretty clear that the last few days of my trip were a whirlwind since I haven’t posted in two days. My traveling buddy and co-worker, Erika, has a goal to make the 2013 the year of more. I think it’s safe to say that her passion for life has worn off on me this week.

Even though each day in Geneva included over 10 hours of meetings with multi-functional partners, I decided to make the evenings an equal priority.

Each night, around 8pm, Erika and I went into Geneva to enjoy dinner either on our own or with co-workers. There were a few adventures, which is to be expected when you’re in a town that speaks 3 languages (German, French, and Italian) none of which we speak.

My favorite meal of the week was dinner with my co-workers at a local fondue restaurant, which is a traditional Swiss delicacy. I learned a lot that night including the tidbit that white wine is the key to enjoying fondue and feeling good in the morning since it helps cut through the cheese. While fondue isn’t something I crave nor have frequently, it was a fun, interactive dinner that allowed us to bond while scraping the bottom of the fondue pot and enjoying raclette, which may be my new favorite form of cheese.

The next night included dinner at an Italian restaurant, Luigia. Well known in the city for being one of the best Italian spots that fills the tables nightly, this was our most challenging dining experience as no one spoke English. We laughed constantly as I had to order my entrée 3 different times and our wine came out far different than we expected. Oh well, we still had fun and the food, when it arrived, was delicious!

Thursday and Friday nights were late nights enjoying the nightlife side of Geneva. Thursday night was a work New Year’s Eve party which included over 250 co-workers and five hours of dancing! Europeans know how to have a great time on the dance floor. The DJ they had that night was perfect- playing every dance favorite while also adding in a few European mixes since over 70% of the attendees were from countries other than the United States.

Friday night, our final night in Geneva and the start of a long weekend called for cocktails and dinner with a few of my local Geneva co-workers. We dined at Di Paolo, a local rustic Italian restaurant where I enjoyed a delicious vegetarian pizza and red wine. The service, like many places in Europe, wasn’t necessarily fast but sometimes it’s refreshing just to slow down and enjoy the company. In true “make 2013 the year of more” form I chose to stay out until the wee hours of the morning dancing at a cool discothèque in Geneva’s Modern Art Museum, MAMCO. Who knew that 70’s music from America is still very popular in Geneva clubs! Dancing to songs like YMCA, Funky Town, and Brick House made for an entertaining evening. It’s amazing how sore my legs are after 2 nights of dancing!

Am I exhausted? Did I only workout 3 mornings this week? Sure, but you know what? This is the year of doing more and living life to the fullest in every sense of the word so sometimes that means breaking a sweat on the dance floor instead of the gym.